Closing Tomorrow: Call for Sessions for 2019 GIA Conference

Grantmakers in the Arts is currently seeking session proposals for the 2019 GIA Conference, the largest annual convening of arts funders, to be held October 13-16 in Denver, Colorado. We greatly value the experience, ideas, and programs that members share with each other and the field at large. Proposals must be submitted by tomorrow, March 20, at 5pm EDT. For more information and to submit your proposals, visit our Call for Sessions page.

From the GIA Reader

In the Fall 2018 issue of the GIA Reader, in “My Oakland Is: Everything,” Porsche Kelly reflects on the value of Oakland in spite of gentrification and what she calls “empty opinions” built around her city’s reputation. The writer and spoken-word artist states: “In places like Oakland, gentrification is a dark hovering cloud. Like a broom, newcomers are putting in time and effort to sweep away the culture, soul, and essence of our city, to drive out the very people who make this place what it is.” Read the piece here.

Relive the 2018 GIA Conference: Favianna Rodriguez, Boots Riley, and W. Kamau Bell

Favianna Rodriguez, artist and cultural organizer, takes the stage at the Tuesday Luncheon Plenary and then, Boots Riley, rapper and Sorry to Bother You director, and W. Kamau Bell, stand-up comic and tv host, discuss art, culture, and communities. Watch the video here.

“Revisiting Creative Approaches to Capitalization and Capacity Building” Webinar

At the Grantmakers in the Arts 2018 Conference, we offered a conference session on capitalization where participants shared best practices and explored creative solutions for when restrictions make capitalization and capacity building much more difficult. But how did that work out? What were the solutions and how can you build on that? Now is your chance to explore what you missed or revisit this topic once again.

Join us on Tuesday, March 26, at 2:00pm EDT / 11:00am PDT to hear from Anna Campbell, senior program officer, Howard Gilman Foundation, and Roman Jackson, program officer, JP Morgan. They will guide us through some brief capitalization fundamentals, revisit case studies, and compare outcomes from this GIA 2018 conference session. Details and registration here.

The backlash against R&B singer R. Kelly following the six-part documentary Surviving R. Kelly, 20 years of accusations against him for sexually assaulting minors, and his arrest on charges of sexually abusing girls as young as 13, have sparked an uproar that seems to signal "that #MeToo has finally returned to black girls," point out Salamishah Tillet and Scheherazade Tillet, co-founders of A Long Walk Home, a nonprofit that uses art to empower young people to end violence against girls and women, in a recent opinion piece in The New York Times…

A piece on the Stanford Social Innovation Review addresses how organizations are examining their work to commit to racial equity within their institutions and impact investing practices…

A post in Medium points out “artists and governments have a future together,” reflecting on how a group of residents had gathered together to brainstorm for a community garden and sculpture project following the call of artist Carolyn Lewenberg…

Understanding where our values and beliefs come from is a key drive for people committed to social change, according to a recent blog post by Julienne Kaleta and Joanna Carrasco, Living Cities coordinators…